Der Maibaum - The Maypole

Current Events

Page 3

Volume 57, Number 2 April / May 2009

Member ProfilePage 6

Web Site

Pages 7

Chapter NewsPages 8-9

Looking BackPage 11

Entertainment

Page 13

Travel

Page 13

Calendar

Page 14

By: Darlene Fuchs

The Easter celebration goes back to the earliest

days of the Christian church. But the date of this

festival has been controversial from the very

beginning. Even the origin of the name of the most

important celebration in the Christian calendar is

unclear. The origins of the German Easter traditions

are not certain but some say they can be traced back

to payments in kind by peasants to their lords; others

say it goes back to the pagan worship of the maiden-

goddess of fertility, “Eastee,” or “Eastre,” “Eostre,”

or “Ostara” and the coming of spring. It is not by

accident that Easter features such symbols of fertility

as the egg and the rabbit, a.k.a. the Easter bunny (der

Osterhase).

The Germanic celebration customs of Easter

(Ostern) is very much like that in most of the

Christian world. Parents give their children Easter

eggs, colored and boiled eggs, Easter bunnies and

other sweets. The children today still hunt for eggs

as they did in the 1500s. An inseparable part of the

holiday is the Easter meal with an Easter cake in the

shape of a lamb enjoyed after the Lenten fast.

The art of decorating hollowed-out eggs

(ausgeblasene Eier) for Easter is an Austrian and

German tradition. The eggs used for cooking Easter

meals are not broken but are emptied by blowing

the contents into a bowl through pinholes at either

end of the egg. The hollow eggs are then beautifully

decorated and hung from shrubs and trees during

Easter week.

Another unique custom associated with Easter in

Germany is the “Easter fire.” For the fire Christmas

trees are collected and burned, clearing away the last

signs of the winter as everyone prepares for spring.

“Easter Markets” all over Germany are a

wonderful way to rediscover traditions and rituals and

to prepare for the Easter holidays. Local craftsmen

display their decorated eggs and there are often other

traditional Easter goodies on sale, including baskets

and bunnies.

Germany is regarded as the birthplace of modern

day Easter icons such as the Easter bunny and Easter

tree. German kids were told of an “Easter hare” (der

Osterhase) that hid eggs and chocolates for children

to find on Easter Sunday. German immigrants to

America, particularly Pennsylvania, brought the

tradition with them and spread it to a wider public.

The Easter celebration (das Osterfest) takes on

both religious and secular forms. The Christian

religious celebration is the most important day in

the church calendar, reflecting Christianity’s very

beginnings in the Resurrection of Jesus. In the

western church, Easter is celebrated on the first

Sunday following the first full moon after the vernal

equinox (die Tagundnachtgleiche). (Eastern Orthodox

Easter follows the same formula, but with the Julian

calendar, so the date can fall one, four, or five weeks

later.) Because this “movable feast” depends on

phases of the moon (Mondphasen, Mondwechsel),

Easter can be observed between March 22 and April

25. In 2009 Easter Sunday (Ostersonntag) falls on

April 12.

By: Darlene Fuchs

May is the month most sung about by poets and

song-writers. It is a time for people to shed the cold

of winter as they rejoice in the warmth of spring.

There are many traditions celebrating the arrival of

spring that continue in Germany today. One such

interactive event is that of the Maibaum (May tree

or pole).

A Maypole is a tall wooden pole made from a tree

trunk (pine or birch), with colorful ribbons, flowers,

carved figures, and various other decorations

adorning it, depending on the location. In Germany

the name Maibaum reflects the custom of placing a

small pine tree atop the Maypole, which is usually

set up in a town’s public square or village green.

The Maypole and the dance around it, is a major

symbol of spring’s reawakening of fruitfulness.

May was known as the “Wonnemond,” the month

of lovers where a young man’s fancy would turn to

love. Over time the Maibaum (May Tree) lost its

original meaning, that of celebrating a wedding. In

the old days, young unmarried men of the village

would organize and sponsor parties, dances and

celebrations, to get the unmarried maidens of the

village into the spirit of May. If then a wedding

would take place, a tree decorated with colorful

streamers and ribbons would be placed in front of

the bride’s house.

The traditional Maypole dance starts with long

ribbons attached high up on the pole. Each dancer

holds the end of a ribbon. The circle of dancers

begins far out from the pole, so the ribbons are

kept fairly taut. There should be an even number

of dancers, facing alternatively clockwise and

counterclockwise. All dancers move in the direction

they are facing, passing right shoulders with the next,

New Members

Page 14

Obituaries

Page 15

See MAY on PAGE 10

2 German-American Journal April / May 2009

Der Deutsch-Amerikaner

DANK National Executive Board

President:

William Fuchs

1. Vice President:

Erich Wittmann

2. Vice President:

Donna Lippert

Treasurer:

Maria Thompson

Secretary:

Beverly Pochatko

DANK National Executive Office

4740 N. Western Ave

Chicago, Il 60625-2013

Call (773) 275-1100

Toll Free (866) 926-1109

Fax (773) 275-4010

Office Hours:9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mon.-Fri.

Look for us on the Web:

www.dank.org

Editorial Staff

Darlene Fuchs, Editor

Darlene@GoldenFoxPro.com

Margita Mandel, Editorial Staff

mulman3@comcast.net

Beverly Pochatko, Chapter

News Editor

erieoma@verizon.net

Stephen Fuchs, Layout & Design

Stephen@FoxTaleEdit.com

Erik Wittmann, Membership

erik25@comcast.net

Eva Timmerhaus, Exec. Secretary

Amelia Cotter, Office Manager

For Advertising & Classifieds,

Contact: Darlene Fuchs

Darlene@GoldenFoxPro.com

General Information

- ISSN 1086-8070 - is published bi-monthly and is the Official Organ of the German American

National Congress. Periodicals

Postage paid at Chicago, Illinois

and additional Mailing Offices.

POSTMASTER:

Send address changes to:German-American Journal

4740 N. Western Ave

Chicago, Il 60625-2013

Annual Subscription

Rate: $15.00

Mission Statement

Liebe Mitglieder und Freunde!

Dear Members and Friends,

I wish everyone a happy Easter and

Spring Season. With the gloom of win-

ter behind us and the hope that spring

brings for warmer weather I also hope

that we see a renewed hope for the world

economy. Not many are unaffected by the current economic

conditions and that includes our members. DANK membership

is a discretionary expense for many and we do very much appre-

ciate your continued support of the causes of DANK and thank

you for your membership.

If you have not paid your dues for 2009 yet, we hope that

you will consider doing so, even though the deadline of March

31 has passed. If you want to keep your membership longevity

(the number of years you have been a continuous DANK mem-

ber), there is a $5.00 reinstatement fee, for computer processing.

If you don’t care about that we will not charge a fee and you

receive a new membership number. In either case we do ap-

preciate your membership and we realize that it is our members

that make DANK what it is. If you are interested in additional

information about our membership payment policy, please read

the small writing in parentheses at the end of this president’s

message.

When I ran for DANK National President in the fall of 2007,

I pledged to our members that I will do my best to improve the

value of DANK membership and improve our organization so

that we can all be proud to be part of DANK. The following are

significant changes, amongst the many that we have made so far,

that you might have noticed. There are more to come.

We have improved the look and content of the DANK Journal

newspaper and the DANK national website with the inclusion of

Forums and President Blog. Our national office was remodeled

to provide a modern look and make it more functional. A new

office manager was hired at the beginning of this year to help us

with upcoming programs. We are now offering a very attractive

credit card program to benefit our members and the organiza-

tion. National and local policies have been streamlined and

standardized to save us money and set up the organization for

growth. A DANK travel and merchandizing/product program

are either up and running or in the process. We are also working

with our chapters and schools to help them revitalize and instill

growth. All this was done at very little cost to DANK through

donations or cost savings.

We will continue this process and I hope that you will sup-

port us to make DANK the best and most valuable Germanic-

American Organization in the United States. You might notice

that I used Germanic as a more inclusive term since we do have

quite a few members that are of Austrian, Swiss or other Ger-

manic descent that share our cause and we trying to be more

inclusive in our terminology.

As mentioned before, our national convention is coming up

this November and will be hosted by Chicago-South chapter.

We are looking forward to a great convention in this, our 50th

anniversary year. I hope that you will join us in the celebration

and the convention. We will have much more information in

the following issues of the DANK Journal and on line. We also

want to congratulate the Chicago, Chicago-South and Chicago-

West chapters, which share the anniversary with the National

organization.

Mit freundlichen Grüßen,

President’s Corner

William Fuchs

National President

Editor’s Column

Darlene Fuchs

Managing Editor

Who Is My Mother?

A lot can be said (and a lot has been

said!) about mothers and how they shape

our lives as we grow up. One of my fa-

vorite quotes is from Abraham Lincoln,

who said, “All that I am or ever hope to

be, I owe to my angel Mother.”

My Mother Gail is half of the Father/Mother team, the one

who gave birth to me. When she first held me in her arms, she

looked down at me and smiled! She is the one that changed my

diapers, gave me my bottle, bathed and dressed me. She is the one

who tended to me when I was sick, wishing she could bear my

pain, but unable to. There is none like my Mother.

If you have children, then you know what it’s like to be a

Mother. Often it’s a tough job. A Mother is lucky when she has

well-disciplined children, but it is only because she has done her

best in order for them to be well-adjusted adults.

I have learned that my Mother is a human being, capable of

making mistakes. She is not perfect, just as none of us are per-

fect. But she is the one that I pictured as being perfect during

my childhood. As I became older, I realized that my Mother was

capable of doing things the right and wrong way, just as much as

the next person. But she is still my Mother. The thing that sets her

apart is her everlasting love for me and my two brothers.

Not until we become adults, do we really begin to appreciate

who Mother really is. She nurtured me through my childhood,

put up with me during my teenage years, and supported me as

an adult.

As I grew older and had my own children, I realized that my

Mother was a very strong person, and I wondered if I could ever

fit into her shoes. No, we wear our ‘own shoes’........we can never

do things the same as our Mother, although she has given us the

foundation from which to build.

Mothers are special. If your Mother is living today, try to make

this Mother’s Day the most wonderful day of her life! Show her

you care if only by telling her you love her. Take her out to eat,

bring her flowers, but show up on Mother’s Day, if possible. You

will never know how much this helps a Mother realize her family

still cares. Sometimes we get busy doing the usual things in life,

and lose sight of the most important aspects - loving our family.

And Mother happens to be where that “family” began. Without

Mother, there would never have been a family. While you are at

it you might also tell Father that you are so happy that he chose

Mother to be his wife.

D.A.N.K., a society of German

Americans today, was founded

in 1959, and is active coast to

coast,with the purpose of repre-

senting all German Americans in

the United States.

D.A.N.K., a non-profit organiza-

tion, supports German cultural

landmarks and events, spon-

sors German American stu-

dent exchanges and the study

of the German language and

culture. It promotes harmony

and goodwill among German

American clubs and societies

across the United States.

D.A.N.K.’s cultural almanac,

with its many programs and sug-

gestions for local events and its

D.A.N.K. Journal are the visual

and communication links between

its members and its corporate

headquarters in Chicago.

D.A.N.K. also acts as an infor-

mation center and exchange on a

variety of subjects concerning the

German American community at

large We welcome your inquiries,

contributions and donations for a

United German America.

Benefits to belong to D.A.N.K.

D.A.N.K. was chosen by many be-

cause of our leadership in repre-

senting the interests of all German

Americans on a national level.

D.A.N.K. has many Chapters

across the United States of Amer-

ica.

D.A.N.K. has over 30 Associated

Member Societies.

D.A.N.K. offers German Lan-

guage classes for both children

and adults

Submission Deadline For The

June / July Issue:

May 1st, 2009

CORRECTION

In an article published in the Feb/Mar ‘09 Journal, un-

der the headline “Volkstrauertag - Fort Custer Michigan,

November 16th, 2008”, the second sentence should have

read: “It (Volkstrauertag) is one of many services held

in the USA and Germany.” Another Volkstrauertag cer-

emony at Fort Sheridan National Cemetery has been host-

ed by DANK Chapter Lake County, Illinois for 30 years.

DIE BRUECKE ZUR

ALTEN HEIMAT

“Building Bridges

to Germany”

Visit our website, DANK.org, to listen

to Live German radio from “Radio

Heimatmelodie” in Germany.

You will also find a list of additional live

German radio stations that you can listen

to online for free.

April / May 2009 German-American Journal 3

Muttertag GeheimnisseMother’s Day Secrets

By: Darlene Fuchs

In Austria, Germany and Switzerland

Muttertag (Mother’s Day) is observed

on the second Sunday in May, just as in

the U.S., Australia, Brazil, Italy, Japan

and many other countries. During the

First World War Switzerland was one of

the first European countries to introduce

Mother’s Day (in 1917). Germany’s

first Muttertag observance took place

in 1922.

While the holiday became “official”

for Americans in 1914, Germans had to

wait until 1933 to have the celebration

declared a holiday. Interestingly

enough, the movement was underfoot

to have the occasion confirmed as an

authorized holiday as early as 1926.

You may be surprised to learn that this

move was overseen by none other than

the Verband Deutscher Blumenhändler

(German Florist Union).

In 1933 this state sponsored holiday

took on more of the Third Reich

ideology that encouraged women to

bear offspring for the fatherland and

was less the celebration of appreciation

that children (and others) express to

their mothers. There was even a medal,

das Mutterkreuz (Mother Cross), in

bronze, silver, and gold (for eight or

more Kinder!), awarded to mothers who

produced children for the Vaterland.

The medal had the popular nickname of

“Karnickelorden” (Rabbit Medallion).

After World War II and the founding of

the Bundesrepublik (German republic)

in 1949, Mother’s Day again took on the

individualized celebration specifically

for mothers. In Germany, if Mother’s

Day happens to fall on Pfingstsonntag

(Pentecost), the holiday is moved to the

first Sunday in May.

One might find it interesting that in

the walled-off East Germany (DDR),

Mother’s Day was not a celebrated

event. In its stead, a state-sponsored

Internationaler Frauentag (International

Women’s Day) was observed on March

8th. The slant on this day was decidedly

not in keeping with the idea of private

celebrations and instead made it a

government sponsored event at which

attendance was frequently mandatory.

Today celebrations in honor of mom

are very much like the celebrations

American moms enjoy. The average

German mother still receives the box of

candy, potted plant, or perfume (usually

Kölnisch Wasser). More often than not,

dinner at a nice restaurant is also part

of the celebration, although the trend

is reversing a bit and more and more

mothers prefer the quiet meal with

their family at home. Very conventional

Germans will wear a white carnation

in a jacket buttonhole in remembrance

of a mother who has passed away, or

a colored carnation for a mother still

living.

Auma ObamaPresident Barack Obama’s German Connection

By: Darlene Fuchs

U.S. President Barack Obama and

his eldest half-sister, Auma (ah-oo-

mah), have the same Kenyan father,

Barack Obama, Sr. (1936-1982).

Although they had been in touch via

phone and letters before, Auma first met

her brother in person in Chicago in the

1980’s, and also helped him during the

U.S. presidential primary campaign.

From 1980 until very recently, for a

total of 16 years, Auma spent most of

her time in Germany and speaks German

well. From 1981 to 1987 she studied

German literature at the University of

Heidelberg. She then was accepted into

a graduate program at the University of

Bayreuth in 1966 where she studied

the relatively new field “interkulturelle

Germanistik”. According to Spiegel,

she wrote her dissertation on “die

Arbeitsauffassung in Deutschland und

literarische Reflektionen darüber” (the

concept of labor in Germany and it’s

reflection in literature).

Auma didn’t spend all her time in

Germany studying in the library. In the

mid-1990’s she was invited by German

television to speak about some of the

vicious attacks on foreigners that were

taking place in the country at that time.

She worked for the local newspaper in

Bayreuth and organized seminars for

the Friedrich Ebert Foundation.

She found part-time work as an

interpreter at trade fairs, and was

chosen among thousands of applicants

for admittance into the German Film

and Television Academy in Berlin. In

the capital city she lived in the multi-

cultural neighborhood of Kreuzberg

and, according to Stern, joined a

“glamorous clique” of successful black

women from the arts and business.

After a stint in London, an

unsuccessful marriage to the British

citizen Ian Manners and the birth of

daughter (Akinyi b. 1997), Auma

returned to Kenya, where she is now

a field director of the UN program

CARE.

Tag der Arbeit - Labor DayBy: Darlene Fuchs

The first day in “the lovely month

of May” is a national holiday in

Germany, Austria and most of Europe.

This day is known as “Tag der Arbeit”

(International Worker’s Day). Oddly,

the widespread custom of celebrating

Labor Day on the first of May, was

inspired by events in the United States,

one of the few countries that does not

observe Labor Day in May!

The International Worker’s

Congress in Paris designated May

Day as a public holiday in 1889. The

attendees, sympathizing with striking

workers in Chicago in 1886, voted

to support the United States labor

movement’s demands for an 8-hour

day. They selected May 1, 1890 as a

day of commemoration for the Chicago

strikers.

In many countries around the world

May 1 became an official holiday called

Labor Day—but not in the U.S., where

that holiday is observed on the first

Monday in September. Historically

the holiday has had special importance

in socialist and communist countries,

which is one reason it is not observed

in May in America. The U.S. federal

holiday was first observed in 1894.

Canadians also have observed their

Labor Day since September 1894.

In Germany, “May Day” (erster Mai)

is a national holiday and an important

day, partly because of Blutmai (“bloody

May”) in 1929. That year, in Berlin,

the ruling Social Democratic (SPD)

party had banned the traditional

worker’s demonstrations. But the KPD

(Kommunistische Partei Deutschland’s)

called for demonstrations anyway. The

resulting bloodbath left 32 people dead

and at least 80 seriously injured. It also

left a big split between the two worker’s

parties (KPD and SPD). The National

Socialists named the holiday “Tag der

Arbeit” (“Day of Labor”). The name is

still used in Germany today.

Unlike the U.S. observance, which

cuts across all classes, Germany’s

“Tag der Arbeit” and most European

Labor Day observances are primarily a

working class holiday. In recent years

Germany’s chronic high unemployment

also comes into focus each May.

Some Say April Fools Day

Originated In GermanyBy: Darlene Fuchs

Could it be that April Fool’s Day,

sometimes called All Fools’ Day,

originated in Germany? On April

1, 1530 a meeting of lawmakers

was supposed to occur in Augsburg,

Germany in order to consider various

financial matters. Because of time

considerations, the meeting did not take

place. But numerous speculators, who

had bet on the meeting occurring, lost

their money and were ridiculed. This

is said to have been the origin of the

tradition of playing pranks on April 1.

The day is celebrated in many

countries with the execution of elaborate

practical jokes on unsuspecting victims.

April 1st is the accepted date for April

Fool’s Day, when both simple and very

sophisticated jokes are known to catch

the unwary or the gullible off guard.

There is evidence of a similar day

in the Gregorian calendar of 1582 and

even as far back as ancient Rome when

the practice would have been observed

on New Year’s Day. Throughout France

in the early sixteenth century, New

Year’s Day was observed on March 25,

the advent of spring. The celebrations,

which included exchanging gifts, ran

for a week, terminating with dinners

and parties on April 1.

In 1563 King Charles IX proclaimed

that New Year’s Day be moved back to

January 1. His proclamation was passed

into law by the French Parliament on

Dec. 22, 1564. According to a popular

explanation, many people either refused

to accept the new date, or did not learn

about it, and continued to celebrate

New Year’s Day on April 1. Other

people began to make fun of these

traditionalists, sending them on “fool’s

errands” or trying to trick them into

believing something false. Eventually,

the practice spread throughout Europe.

There are at least two difficulties

with this explanation. The first is that

it doesn’t fully account for the spread

of April Fools’ Day to other European

countries. The Gregorian calendar was

not adopted by England until 1752,

for example, but April Fools’ Day was

already well established there by that

point.

Many theories have been put

forward about how the tradition began.

Unfortunately, none of them are very

compelling. So the origin of the “custom

of making April Fools” remains a

mystery to some, but as for me I choose

to believe it started in Germany.

L e t t e r s F r o m O u r R e a d e r sI am a German-American. German born,

American by choice.

My journey also started with modest

beginnings - but with love and work I never

knew any shortcomings. I simply trusted

myself and my Lord, and embarked after

school and apprenticeship on the voyage

across the ocean, seeking a new world to

help me grow.

The journey was not always easy, but it

was solid and progressive. Each day a little

better than the last. When disappointment

struck, the Good Lord opened new doors.

From Bosch, the German Media Group to

Publisher and Trankle, it lead to a strong

and healthy family.

This is the country I love, this is the way

I want to live: free, mobile and productive.

This is a good time for all to be Americans.

This is the beginning of change, when we

German-Americans, also a minority, can be

proud again and walk tall. Every American

has his or her roots elsewhere. Only what we

make of our lives and our future counts.

Let us be grateful, and may the God bless

you and the United States of America.

Bert Lachner (Glen Ellyn, Illinois)

4 German-American Journal April / May 2009

(Part 2 of 5)

By: Amelia Cotter

Many of the primary sources in this work come

directly from the archives at The Frederick County

Historical Society in Frederick, Marlyand.

Life In The POW Camp

Life in the POW camp could be strenuous, but

prisoners also enjoyed some freedoms. There were

strict restrictions on the workday of the prisoners, en-

suring their productivity but providing the needed rest

and downtime to maintain them as effective workers.

POWs could work no more than ten hours a day and

be away from the camp for no more than twelve hours

a day. In many cases, contractors were responsible for

providing transportation, and the prisoners had a right

to a lunch break and were not to be physically mis-

treated in any way.

The POWs would make an average of 80 cents per

day that they were allowed to keep—the pay already

earned by a German private—as compared to a nor-

mal civilian worker who would receive four or five

dollars a day. This provided at least three dollars a day

to the Maryland treasury, in the long run essentially

allowing the POW program to pay for itself.

Interestingly, not only did the Maryland treasury

benefit from POW labor, but prisoner labor created

a 35 percent increase in Maryland’s tomato crop in

1945 alone. A 40 percent increase in Maryland’s over-

all agricultural productivity during the war years was

also attributed to the work of the German POWs. At

the national level, from June to December 1945, Ger-

man and Italian POWs in Maryland saved the U.S

government about five million dollars.

The Geneva Convention also declared that POWs

must receive the same quality of diet as the captor’s

soldiers. The diet in a Maryland POW camp consisted

of an average of 3,500 calories a day and included

rolled oats, milk, raised bread, and coffee for break-

fast, and vegetables, bread, fruit, and water for lunch.

Dinner might be soup, vegetables, salad, bread, and

tea. Typical activities that the prisoners were permit-

ted to participate in were athletic, cultural, educa-

tional, and religious. Some camps even formed small

orchestras. POWs at Camp Frederick even leveled a

field on which to play soccer.

Most soldiers were well treated and well behaved.

In at least one instance at Frederick, however, a guard

who had recently returned from service in Germany

beat some prisoners severely with the butt of his rifle

after the prisoners teased him (see page 16). Wales,

on the other hand, attested, “I never heard of any

time when a gun was even pointed at a prisoner at the

camp.” He explained that by the time he got to be a

guard at the camp, the war was over and most of the

men did not want to fight, but simply wanted to go

home. In addition, there were 400 prisoners among

45 American guards who had received little training

in handling the prisoners, and they could easily have

been overtaken.

Some of the prisoners—especially Nazi sympathiz-

ers—became violent towards other prisoners or tried

to escape. Most prisoners who managed to duck out

of the camp guards’ sight and run off were recaptured

within 24 hours. An article appeared in the Frederick

News-Post on January 4, 1945 concerning the notifi-

cation of the public in the event of a prisoner’s escape,

in which the Mayor declared that he was “100 percent

in accord with the suggestion that the community be

promptly informed of any such escape.”

Some daring escapes did occur in Maryland. Two

prisoners at Camp Frederick who had managed to

secure unmarked clothes cut through the fence and

walked backward away from the camp, eventually

catching the bus at Braddock Heights. The driver was

suspicious and called the police, and the two POWs

were captured in Hagerstown. One of them was Pe-

ter Siegfried Muetzel (see page 12 and 23), who pre-

ferred to escape to Cincinnati rather than go home to

the Russian sector of Germany where his home had

been destroyed.

The most dramatic escape occurred when the

21-year-old, English-speaking Hermann Pospiech

eluded the FBI for five months after walking out of

Camp Somerset in southern Maryland. He managed

to get all the way to New York City, where he was

found with a Social Security Card in his name and a

U.S. Army discharge pin.

Strikes were also rare and mostly happened when

the prisoners found their work to be too difficult or

demanding—some protested because they felt their

work was too closely related to the war effort, and

therefore, in violation of the Geneva Convention.

Others did not want to lift or remove objects that were

too heavy, protesting tasks such as clearing out large

trees in the winter. To deal with this problem, the “No

Work, No Eat” policy of World War I was adopted by

the provost marshal’s office, restricting an uncoopera-

tive prisoner’s diet to bread and water.

A 1944 article from a Maryland newspaper entitled

“War Prisoners Wouldn’t Work: Those Here Put On

Bread, Water Diet” describes this punishment being

inflicted upon prisoners in “a camp near Frederick,

Md.,” for protesting and refusing to work. Apparently,

the tactic worked as leaders of the camp received “a

promise to work [the next] day.”

Due to the success of the first two stages of the

POW program, in 1944 the War Department devel-

oped a new project as part of its third and final phase

of development: changing the political views of the

prisoners from National Socialism to political democ-

racy. The project was called the Prisoner of War Spe-

cial Projects Division (POWSPD) and especially took

off in 1945 after it was clear that the Third Reich was

destined to fall. Since the Geneva Code did not allow

the POWSPD to force its ideas upon the prisoners,

the program was voluntary, and was euphemistically

entitled “Intellectual Diversion.”

It should be stated that most of the prisoners did

not support Adolph Hitler or the fascist regime in Ger-

many, and only an estimated eight to ten percent of

the total German POW population were known to be

adamant Nazi sympathizers. Some of the more mili-

tant Nazis were known to harass less committed sol-

diers. Others burned copies of Der Ruf (The Call), an

anti-Nazi newspaper written by German POWs across

the United States and overseen by the POWSPD. It

was based in Rhode Island at the German POW camp,

Camp Kearney.

Those prisoners who refused to integrate into

regular camp life were placed in segregated camps

with each other, one of which was in Oklahoma. The

POWSPD program chose to focus more instead on

anti-Nazis and political moderates, “stimulating indi-

vidualism among them and eroding uncritical habits.”

One method used to help transform the prisoners psy-

chologically was to show them graphic images, such

as piles of naked, starved corpses, or to hang up post-

ers with these images throughout the camp. Der Ruf

also included haunting images and detailed informa-

tion about the concentration camps in Europe.

One major part of the political indoctrination of

the prisoners was the POWSPD’s dispatch of Assis-

tant Executive Officers (AEOs) to the campsites to

discuss and compare the histories of the United States

and Germany. These AEOs attempted to convince

prisoners that the German past had been riddled with

failures due to their governments, while the American

commitment to democracy had helped it develop so

successfully. They hoped to instill in the prisoners the

idea that democracy was the best option for rebuild-

ing Germany after the war.

To be continued...

Stories from Camp Frederick:

German World War II POWs in Frederick, Maryland

ATTENTION DANK MEMBERS

We are proud to offer you a lapel pin that shows your heritage with the

organization’s logo.

This attractive pin comes in 2 sizes:Men - Cost $7.50 (Large)

Women - Cost $7.50 (Small)

You may phone your order by calling our toll free number at:

(866) 926-1109

or write/email our National Office at

office@dank.org

FI N D IT ON L I N E

If you have missed previous installments

of this article, you can now find them on

DANK’s website.

Just Visit:

and select the issue you want to read!

(Part 1 located in the February/March 2009 Issue)

www.dank.org/journal_archives.html

April / May 2009 German-American Journal 5

By: Greg McClelland

Few historical sites in Hamburg, Germany evoke more

painful feelings from the Nazi years than Fuhlsbüttel con-

centration camp, located in the Northern district of the city.

It is at this place of horror that history reminds us that the

past never remains completely dead and buried. This omi-

nous building with it’s dreadful past, served as one of Hit-

ler’s most brutal prisons and is a place not widely known

or recognized outside of Germany, yet over 450 innocent

people lost their lives here between 1933 and 1945. Fuhls-

büttel concentration camp was one of the first camps to be

created.

On September 4, 1933, Fuhlsbüttel was turned over to

the notorious S.S. and S.A. by Karl Kaufmann, Gauleit-

er (District Leader) and Reichsstaathalter (Governor) of

Hamburg. Here, virtually all the German resistance-fight-

ers of Hamburg were imprisoned. These prisoners in-

cluded many Social-Democrats, Socialists, Communists,

Trade Unionists as well as many other opponents of the

Nazi regime. Many others also were sent to Fuhlsbüttel

such as the “Swing Kids” resistance group, Jehovah’s Wit-

ness, Sinti gypsies, prostitutes, homosexuals, the homeless

and individuals considered to be “anti-social” by the Nazis.

Fuhlsbüttel was a remand prison for those waiting a higher

sentence. Many prisoners here were later sentenced to

other concentration camps such as, Ravensbrück, Buchen-

wald Sachsenhausen and Neuengamme without court hear-

ings on grounds of “High Treachery”. For many prisoners,

this meant almost certain death. Following “Krystallnacht”

(Night of Broken Glass) on November 9/10, 1938, approxi-

mately 700 Jews went sent to Fuhlsbüttel.

This camp was known by the prisoners as “KolaFu”,

which was an acronym for Konzentrationslager (concen-

tration camp) Fuhlsbüttel, but after the Gestapo took over

the camp in 1936, the name was officially changed to “Po-

lice Prison” to disguise its real function as a place of terror

within the Nazi concentration camp system.

Here, the guards were especially cruel to the prisoners,

particularly those who were German and who were con-

sidered to be “traitors to the Fatherland”. Prisoners were

beaten and tortured repeatedly and for extended periods of

time, sometimes with clubs wrapped in barbed wire. Many

prisoners died from execution and starvation, while other

prisoners committed suicide due to the harsh living condi-

tions and the overall physical, psychological and emotional

abuse as well as the general cruelty of the guards. Some

were “shot while trying to escape”, a favorite excuse by the

S.S. Whenever they felt like shooting a prisoner.

Absolute power soon breeds absolute contempt for the

powerless and nothing could have been more true than at

Fuhlsbüttel. One such man who managed to survive this

hell, was a very brave German resistance-fighter named Ar-

nold Hencke and a member of the SPD (Social Democratic

Party). He began his selfless and tireless efforts to bring

down the Nazi regime, along with his twelve members of

his Genossen (Youth Group). Beginning in March 1933, at

age 17, he became an illegal courier for information distrib-

uting anti-Nazi leaflets which were produced by the mem-

bers of his youth group on a hectograph machine in a base-

ment. Everyday, he bicycled from Hamburg to the town of

Ueterseen, twenty miles to the North and then back again to

Hamburg under the cover of darkness covering a distance

of forty miles round trip, only to arrive home around 5:00

AM, just in time to get ready to go to his factory job. Day

after day, month after month, he distributed his anti-Nazi

leaflets with little or no concern for his own safety. He gave

them to what he termed “good minded Communists” in the

factories in order to encourage them to revolt against the

Nazis. He kept his illegal leaflets in a special belt which he

hid under his shirt and as he rode his bicycle, he would lick

his leaflets and stick them to buildings and telephone poles.

His mother helped protect him and his family by hiding the

leaflets he couldn’t take with him on his trips.

Hencke managed to get away with his illegal resistance

activities for almost two years until late January 1935,

when his luck finally ran out. One day, a man in Ueter-

seen was caught by the Gestapo with one of Hencke’s

leaflets and was arrested. Under torture, the man revealed

the name of the person who gave him the leaflet. Now the

Gestapo headed South to Hamburg to arrest Hencke. On

January 25th, they arrived in the early morning at the fac-

tory where he worked. Two Gestapo officers escorted him

outside the building and put him into the back of a big,

black car with the driver and another Gestapo man. As the

car drove off, the curtains were drawn and the two officers

began to beat him with clubs and brass knuckles. When he

arrived at Fuhsbüttel concentration camp, he was thrown

into cell number 9, Block C spitting out blood. This was

to be the beginning of a long painful journey, which almost

cost him his life.

Arnold Hencke, a man who fought for his convictions

against the Nazis, had lost his freedom. He was now a pris-

oner of the Third Reich, number 5151, a prisoner without

a name. Never again was he to be referred to by his name,

but only by his number, This was the how the Nazi’s stole

a prisoners identity in the concentration camps. A prisoner

was never called by name, only by their number.

The guards then tied his hands and put him in a corner

of his cell and began kicking him until he fell to the floor,

Then they started kicking him in the head with their boots.

There were four of them present and one of the guards

would encourage the others to beat him harder and more

brutally. After his initial beating in his cell, he lost several

teeth. He was then forced to wash himself in his own drink-

ing water in his tiny, filthy cell. The living conditions at

were absolutely deplorable. He slept on a metal frame bed

supported by chains on a straw mattress. For warmth, he

had a dirty, wool blanket. During the winter months it got

so cold in his unheated cell that he couldn’t sleep at night.

When he could sleep, the rats would come out and bite him

on his toes. When he would scream out in pain, the guards

would go into his cell and beat him.

One day, he mentioned to one on the guards that he had

six rats in his cell, the guard coldly replied, “The rats be-

long there. That is their home”. For food, Hencke received

only three slice of bread and a small cup of “corn coffee”

which was pushed through the door of his cell on a tray by

a guard who would then say, “Fressen”, which means to eat

like an animal.

The physical and emotional abuse continued, some-

times up to 3-4 times a day. “You are a Communist”, the

guards repeatedly screamed at him or “You are a Red Pig”

and Hencke simply replied, “No, I am a Social-Democrat”.

For six months, he had to endure continual beatings by the

guards until late July when the guards received their or-

ders that they could no longer beat him, but only shove him

around instead.

His court trial was coming up in early November and

the Nazis wanted him to look presentable for the German

people so as to hide the evidence of their physical abuse

against Hencke. He was then sent to the camp hospital to

heal his wounds, especially the injuries to his head which

had swollen up greatly due to inflammation and puss from

the infections.

On November 5, 1935, he was brought before the sec-

ond Senate of the High Court in Hamburg and given a very

unfair trial. His lawyer was not a Nazi and tried his best

to get Hencke released from Fuhlsbüttel. He told Hencke,

“We have to be prepared to accept any sentence handed to

you”. However, despite his lawyers efforts, all the cards

were stacked against him and everything to no avail. His

lawyer flat out told him, “They can burn you, they can

beat you, they can hang you and there is nothing you can

do!”. At this point, the the Nazi judge charged Hencke with

“High Treason” and sentenced him to a total of two and a

half years of imprisonment between Fuhlsbüttel concentra-

tion camp and Hahnöfersand youth labor camp.

Later in November, he was sent to Hahnöfersand to fin-

ish out his sentence. Here, he experienced more physical

abuse by the S.S. guards, one of which shot and killed one

his friends who died in his arms. Food at this camp was

also scarce and by now Hencke became very skinny. Out of

sympathy, of a fellow prisoner who was in charge of giving

out rations, helped him survive starvation by giving him

more food.

Here, Hencke was forced to do back breaking work

pushing rocks on carts, which would frequently came off

the tracks. When this occurred, the S.S. would use this as

an excuse to beat them prisoners even more.

In 1936, the army decided that they needed more men

for Hitler’s newly created Wehrmact and took several

young men from Hahnöfersand and gave them a chance to

avoid further imprisonment by joining them army. Hencke

was one of those chosen. Two Majors lined these German

boys and young men, going down each line, asking them,

“Do you want to go to war?”. When on of them reached

Hencke and asked him this question he defiantly said, “No.

Not for Hitler!”. The Major whispered to him, “It is a good

thing that I asked you this question and not the other Major,

because he would have shot you”.

Many months went by until late July 1937, when Hencke

was to finally be released from Hahnöfersand, but was in-

stead he was sent back to Fuhlsbüttel where he was told by

the camp Commandant that in ten days he was to be sent

with the next train transport to the newly established Sach-

senhausen concentration camp. When his mother heard the

news, she was deeply distressed and immediately walked

to the Gestapo headquarters to beg for her sons freedom.

Day after day she begged to the Gestapo Chief Johannes

Streckenbach to release her son. Finally, on the ninth day,

she encountered two highly decorated S.S. officers who

asked her why she was crying. When she told them of her

sons plight, they were sympathetic and told her told they

were speaking with Streckenbach and would see what they

could do for her. After a long talk with the Gestapo chief,

they managed to persuade him to release Hencke and to put

him on probation.

Finally, on July 30, 1937, Hencke was released from

imprisonment and put on probation. He went to the hospi-

tal weighing around only eighty or so pounds. The nurses

gave up on him due to his malnutrition, but miraculously he

recovered. After his long re-convalescence, he went back

to work at his factory job, but was watched by the Gestapo

who would show up to check on him and to question his

boss. As a result of their spying on him, he began to devel-

op what he called “persecution mania” and became terrified

of being arrested again. However, this didn’t deter Hencke

in his pursuits and later went to school, but was kicked out

by the Nazis after four and a half terms.

In 1939, he joined a gymnastics school in Hamburg

called Armin where he met several of his comrades from

his prison days and he continued his resistance activities.

Here, he was protected by a sympathetic gym teacher.

After the terrible fire bombings of Hamburg in 1943,

Hencke repaired roofs for a living. Later in January 1945,

he was forced to work in a factory producing anti-tank ob-

stacles and had to keep watch at night to protect it against

bombing raids. Hencke, narrowly escaped death more than

once during this time and managed to survive WW II,

which came to a dramatic ending on May 7, 1945.

Fuhlsbüttel concentration camp was finally liberated by

the British on May 3, 1945. After the war, Hencke went

on to become a school teacher, teaching gymnastics, wood

working, science and math. In 1987, he helped create

Fuhlsbüttel as a memorial to over 450 men and women who

died at this concentration camp Today, it is mantained by

the Association of Social Democrats/ The Victims of Nazi

Persecution. As a result of of Hencke’s volunteer work and

brave heroism, he was awarded the “Medal for loyal work

in the service of the people in silver”. In 2001, the district

assembly of Hamburg-North honored him with the pin of

honor for his hard work in keeping the memory of the Ger-

man resistance alive as well as the crimes committed by the

Nazis. He continued his work until his death on January 10,

2003 at age 87.

Arnold Hencke was one of tens of thousands who

fought against Hitler and the Nazi regime. Between 1933

and 1945, approximately three million Germans were im-

prisoned in Nazi concentration camps and prisons. Out

of these 800,000 were held on counts of active resistance

against the regime. I was very fortunate to have had the

chance to interview such a great man back in May 2000

and again in May 2001 and I continue to tell his story after

almost nine years. The scars of the Third Reich and the

atrocities committed during WW II have had a profound

impact on millions of people who lived through this ter-

rible time period in history, an impact which is still being

felt to this day; wounds which time cannot erase, feelings

that never go away.

Let us never forget our history so that the past can be

our greatest teacher.

A Prisoner Without a Name

Hencke stands in front of a display, which reads: Prisoners In

Fuhlsbüttel - Social Democrats, Socialists, and Trade Unions.

6 German-American Journal April / May 2009

MEMBERSHIP

Where Are We As An Organization?

By: Erik Whittman

Membership Committee Chair

Before reporting on the effort to in-

crease our organizational membership,

let me THANK each and everyone of

you reading these words because it

means your one of those members who

has paid his/her membership dues and

is an active member of this organiza-

tion. If you have not paid your 2009

dues, please do so today. Hopefully all

of you are undertaking your own effort

to support the “JUST ADD ONE “cam-

paign by reaching out to a family mem-

ber, neighbor or friend and attempted to

recruit new members for DANK. Ulti-

mately that is the most effective way of

increasing membership in DANK.

Where are we as it pertains to our

membership drive? Well due to the

good work of our webmaster Stephen

Fuchs, we have a vastly improved

DANK website that makes joining much

easier. You now have the ability to pull

down an application form and select

what chapter you wish to join or just be

a national member (previously known

as a member at large). On a more direct

membership drive effort, some initia-

tives started over a year ago are coming

to fruition. Pittsburgh’s Mason-Dixon

sub chapter, started less than two years

ago, is reaching the point of having

achieved a 40 plus members status. By

years end there is the possibility of be-

coming its own chapter. Credit needs to

be given to the sub chapter founder and

Pittsburgh VP, Chris Decker. DANK

Columbus joined our family last sum-

mer through the hard work of Ulrike

Zika, which also simultaneously started

a DANK School for that communi-

ty. Efforts to get chapters established

in Syracuse, New York and the upper

peninsula of Michigan continue to be

addressed with the hope that we will

have established chapters in those areas

by years end. Pittsburgh’s second sub

chapter is about to be established with

the creation of the Laurel Highlands

unit. William Russell, long time Erie

Chapter DANK member and his wife

are spearheading this effort. Good news

was received this past month regarding

Chapter Indianapolis, which held new

election and is working at adding new

members to reinvigorate that organiza-

tion. Through the hard work of Katie

Viebach, Chapter Peoria has become

active again.

We still have several chapters that

we need to pull out of inactive status

and we will work on this in the next

year. The good news overall is that we

have stopped our membership slide and

that Chapters like our 4 Chicago chap-

ters (Chicago, Chicago South, Chicago

West and Northern suburbs ), Milwau-

kee, Erie, Phoenix. Fox Valley, Benton

Harbor and Pittsburgh are either in-

creasing their numbers or holding their

own. Some of our smaller chapters like

Cleveland, Decatur, South Bend and

La Porte continue to serve their mem-

bership through selfless leadership and

dedicated hard work within those chap-

ters.

While much work still lays ahead in

getting a sizeable increase in our Mem-

bership, the process has begun and with

the help of all of our membership we

should be able to report ongoing suc-

cess!

National Board Member Profile:

EXECUTIVE SECRETARY,

EVA TIMMERHAUS

December 12th, was a very happy

day for August and Katharina Göller

of Wuppertal, Nordrhein-Westfallen,

Germany, as they celebrated the birth

of their daughter Eva.

At the age of seven Eva Timmerhaus

and family left Wuppertal for Thorn,

Westpreussen because of heavy bomb-

ing in the area. Two years later they

were evacuated to Sachsen, Mittel-

deutschland. As with all “Flüchtlinge”,

the next 3 ! years were spent with her

mother living in poor conditions - one

small room, one bed and limited food.

Eva’s father was able to help her and

her mother escape to the West and re-

turn to Wuppertal.

In 1958 after accepting an invitation

from her Aunt and Uncle, who came to

Chicago five years earlier, Eva packed

her bags and made her way to the

Windy City. Landing at Midway Air-

port on a cold day in January she was

greeted with a friendly smile and bois-

terous “Welcome to Chicago!” from a

U.S. Customs Agent, who promptly

confiscated the apple her mother care-

fully packed for her trip.

That spring Eva took a job with the

Fred Harvey Company at the Railway

Exchange Building in downtown Chi-

cago. After carefully saving her money

she travelled across the United States

enjoying the natural beauty the country

had to offer.

In 1961 Eva Timmerhaus did not

meet her future husband John by ac-

cident, but because of an accident. Her

Aunt was involved in an automobile

accident and friends recommended

Timmerhaus Body Shop, which John’s

family owned, for the repairs. Born

in Chicago, John’s parents were hard

working immigrants from Dorsten,

Westfalen.

On April 20, 1962 the young couple

was married in St. Clement’s Church.

By spring 1968 the two “Timmerhäus-

er” grew to five: twin daughters, Eve

and Elizabeth, and son John.

From 1980-1985 Eva worked for the

German magazine Die Hausfrau, now

know as Das Fenster.

In June, 1986 Eva Timmerhaus

joined the Executive Office headed by

then National President, Elsbeth M.

Seewald. The fall of the same year her

beloved husband John suddenly passed

away.

Over the past 22 ! years Eva came

to handle all duties connected with the

Executive Office. Through DANK she

has had the opportunity to meet many

wonderful people and formed close

friendships with members. Eva is now

working part time.

Eva enjoys spending time with her

three grandsons, has a passion for trav-

eling, and when at home enjoys work-

ing in the quiet of her garden.

This is a series in which we would like to introduce to the membership the various mem-

bers of our national board. The board consists of the elected board (President, two VP’s,

Secretary and Treasurer) along with two representatives from each of the three regions

of our organization. We hope that you will enjoy these articles which are intended to

familiarize our members with the Organization’s leadership.

JO I N DANK ON L I N E

Joining DANK is now even easier. Visit www.dank.org to sign up for

your membership online! DANK accepts all major credit cards when

you sign up through the website.

April / May 2009 German-American Journal 7

Understanding and Reading the Presidents Blog (For Newcomers)

By: Darlene Fuchs

With five million or more bloggers out there and

even more readers it is assumed that everyone knows

how to read a blog, or how they work. From my

blogging experience I can say that this is definitely

not true and hopefully this short article will describe

the process for newcomers. This article is for the

readers of blogs.

The DANK

Presidents blog is a

traditional web-log

where the DANK

president shares

his or her thoughts.

It gives readers a

feeling of being

connected with a

more personal side

of the organization.

Entries of

commentary, descriptions of events, or other material

such as photographs will be added regularly.

The blog allows individuals to leave comments

in an interactive format offering another source of

communication.

TO GET STARTED

To access the blog, go to our website at dank.org

and click on the Blog button to the left side of the

web page. Read the welcome page that comes up and

just follow the instructions to get started.

BLOG LAYOUT

Blogs are laid out in a last-in-first out style. This

means that the last item posted or written is at the top

of the blog. So unlike a diary where you would read

from the beginning to the end, with a blog you read

from the end to the beginning. This is helpful for

those who make frequent visits to the blog since you

do not have to scroll through posts you may have

already read.

COMMENTS

This refers to reader comments which can be left

under “Leave a Reply”. You will need to fill in your

name and email address. Then in the large empty

box type in your comments, thoughts or questions.

When you click the submit button your reply will be

added to the presidents blog.

Discuss Your Germanic Heritage

By: Darlene Fuchs

A forum is a public meeting place open for dis-

cussion on various topics. An online forum is some-

times called a bulletin board or discussion area. The

main idea of a forum is to provide a place where

people, of similar interests, can go to interact and

exchange information and ideas regarding specific

topics.

As a “Guest” you can view the forum and read

submissions before joining. If you decide to join you

will be able to log into the forum, read what has pre-

viously been posted, start your own discussions or

reply to discussions already started.

How do I Use the Forum?

From the DANK National Home Page (www.

dank.org) click Forum on the left-hand side of the

webpage. Once the Forum page opens you can click

on any of the topics and read the current discussions.

You will need to register in order to enjoy the in-

teractive participation with other members. Prior

to registering open the “Welcome! Read This First”

and open the User’s Manual, where you will find

more “How To” information. You can print out a pdf

copy of the Users Manual to refer to later. Also read

the “Forum Rules” and the “Welcome from Presi-

dent Bill”. Now you are ready!

How to Register

Click on Register. You will need to

enter a Users Name (this can be your

name or a nickname), your e-mail and a password.

You should always use an email that you check often

since it will be verified before you can access the

forum. You will also want to use a password that is

easy to remember. Just below this there is a confir-

mation code in a box that you must retype in the pro-

vided text box. Finally answer the simple question,

then hit submit. Now you are well on your way.

How to Log inOn the right side of the Forum you will

see Log In. After you click this you

will need to enter your User Name and

Password. Now you are ready to go.

How to read on-going discussionsTo read current discussions, simply

click on the forum category that inter-

ests you. You will then see a list of top-

ics, along with the author, how many replies the top-

ic has received, and the date the last post occurred.

Simply click on a topic and you will be able to view

the original post, and all replies.

How to contribute to discussionsThere are two ways to contribute to the

forum. One way is to reply to an already

existent topic. The second method of

contributing to discussions is to create a new topic.

To reply to an already existent topic open (click

on) the topic and choose “Post Reply”. You will be

directed to the Post Reply page. Simply type in the

text you want to post, and click the “Submit” button.

If you would like to see what your message will look

like you can “Preview” first.

Before posting a new Topic, be sure to look

through the current Category Topics. This will help

prevent duplicate postings. Once you have deter-

mined the topic you would like to discuss does not

exist, choose the “Post New Topic” option. This will

take you to the New Topic page, where you will be

asked to enter a Subject, and then a message. Be

sure the text you enter as the Subject is descriptive

of what you want to discuss.

Members and Chapters have been insisting that

DANK National improve membership benefits and

offer support, The DANK Forum is one tool devel-

oped to create an interactive environment so that we

can learn and grow from each other. But, if we do

not use it we can not take advantage of the informa-

tion it has to offer.

1

2

3

4

WE B L I N K

To go directly to the DANK Discussion

Forum, enter the following link into your

browser’s address bar...

www.dank.org/forum

WE B L I N K

To go directly to the DANK Presidents

Blog, enter the following link into your

browser’s address bar...

www.dank.org/blog

8 German-American Journal April / May 2009

Romance Ruled At The DANK Chapter Lake County Karneval

By: Ursula Hoeft

Romance was in the air when D.A.N.K. Chapter

Lake County, Illinois celebrated Fasching - and Val-

entine’s Day - at the Gorton Center in Lake Forest,

on February 14. The revelry began at 6:11 sharp and

continued nonstop through the evening, with many

famous romantic couples joining in.

The handsome Sir Lancelot and lovely Queen Gui-

nevere, a.k.a. Richard and Brigitte Kaeske, Chapter

Board members, were among the merrymakers. Bri-

gitte Kaeske was also Karneval Chair. Other well-

known lovers from various periods of history made

a brief “appearance” on the dance floor. Samson and

Delilah, Romeo and Juliet, Rhett Butler and Scarlett

O’Hara, Lauren Bacall and Humphrey Bogart, even

John Lennon and Yoko Ono were among them - all

summoned by the Mad Hatter, a.k.a. Cobi Stein, Chap-

ter President, who made sure throughout the evening

that everyone had a good time.

The Fasching spirit was infectious. Even Satan,

a.k.a. Ernst Ott, Honorary D.A.N.K. National Presi-

dent, joined in the fun. So did Alexandra Pradella-

Ott, dressed in a colorful clown costume. And an af-

fectionate pair of insects - lady bug, Irmy Gohs and

potato bug, Willi Gohs, D.A.N.K. Chapter Fox Valley

President - mingled with the revelers, their antennae

bobbing happily all night.

But romance and merrymaking weren’t the only

reasons folks came to the Chapter’s Karneval celebra-

tion. Delicious home-made German food, prepared

by Anni Kordas and Victor Kordas, a Chapter Vice

President, with the help of Lisa and Harry Kordas and

Anna Kolupar, accompanied by scrumptious desserts

baked by Chapter members, were a big draw too. So

were the drinks served by an irreverent friar/bar ten-

der, a.k.a. Greg Hoeft, a Chapter Vice President, who

looked like he had just stepped off a Franziskaner

Beer label. And there was dance music, of course,

provided by the Walter Flechsig Band.

The evening also marked the end of the reign of

Prinz Greg I and Prinzessin Ursula I who were crowned

at the Chapter’s 2008 Karneval. The Prinzenpaar bid

the crowd a fond farewell and invited everyone to join

them on the dance floor. Afterward, Prinz Greg was

overheard lamenting, “the year sure went by fast - like

they say, time flies when you’re having fun!”

The same was true for the Fasching merrymaking.

The fun came to an end much too soon - hopefully the

romance lasted longer.

By: Nicholle Dombrowski

An evening out at Zum Deutschen Eck. A cold

beer on a muggy Chicago summer day at The Bis-

mark or later, Marigold Gardens. Picking up Kuchen

at Hopfner’s Bakery for your sister’s birthday. Din-

ner dances at Germania Club. Your cousin’s wedding

at Matt Iglers or Golden Ox. Pictures of your neigh-

borhood block clubs during World War II.

The Archive Committee is developing our first in

house exhibit “Lost German Chicago”.

Slated to open in October 2009, the exhibit will

feature art, artifacts and memorabilia on what has

been lost in the Chicago German community and dis-

play attempts of archiving and preserving that which

has been entrusted to D.A.N.K.

Highlights already include: installation of 30 feet

of pristine wood carvings depicting Wagner’s operas

formerly installed in the Germania Club commis-

sioned by the Oscar Meyer family, tables of Turner

trophies, Hessen Verein standards, items from dozens

of restaurants including the original Red Star Inn.

Lost German Chicago will also debut The Lega-

cy Project - photographic portraits and filmed oral

histories of 15 German-born, senior D.A.N.K. mem-

bers. The project will showcase the commonality of

individual struggles and triumphs as immigrants in

the United States. D.A.N.K. will maintain this effort

of encouraging future generational cooperation of

preserving oral and visual history, by revisiting this

project as a yearly installation and maintaining past

histories within the museum archives.

Do you have photos or other memorabilia from

Chicago German establishments or restaurants that

are now defunct? Postcards, ashtrays, matchbooks,

coasters, napkins, invitations, menus? Do you have

letters and family photographs of German life on the

north and south sides of Chicago? – do a little “Früh-

ling” cleaning like a proper German and let the world

see these treasures.

Please donate or loan items to be part of our ex-

hibit. We will gladly handle reproductions for you.

Please contact us for delivery or pick up!

DANK Chicago Issues Most Wanted List Pittsburgh Celebrates

Super Bowl Victory!

HERE WE GO STEELERS was the roar of the

citizenry of Pittsburgh and like in any community, our

DANK members in Chapter 58 took great pride in the

unprecedented 6th Super Bowl victory of our beloved

STEELERS. Throughout the greater Pittsburgh area

Playoff and Super bowl parties were held including by

our Pittsburgh DANK faithful. To add to our pleasure,

Region 2 President and National VP Donna Lippert,

which covers Phoenix, could not resist challangeing

Pittsburgh Chapter President/ National VP Erich

Wittmann to a bet suggesting the mighty Steelers

would fall to Phoenix. Not only did we “burgers”

from Pittsburgh have the last laugh, we also walked

away with a half a case of Michigan wine, which was

offered as bounty by Ms. Lippert. DANK chapter #

58 offered up both Iron City Pretzels and Pittsburgh

chocolates should we have not been victorious but

there was never any doubt in our minds. But in

good faith, Chapter President Wittmann still plans on

bringing some of the Pittsburgh goodies to the next

annual Board meeting so that all in attendance can

wash down those pretzels and chocolates with that

Michigan wine. No worry Pittsburgh Chapter Board

members, two of those bottles from half the case

will come back home as bounty to be enjoyed by the

Pittsburgh Chapter Board. It was all great fun, we

had parties, our beloved Steelers won, and best of all

Region 2 President Donna Lippert has to pay up for

running her “lip”. Now if we could only get Chapter

Phoenix, with whom we did not have a bet to send a

case of grapefruit.

Alexandra Pradella-Ott and Ernst Ott

Judged best costumes - From left: Herbert Pluntke, Greg Hoeft,

Willi and Irmy Gohs, Brigitte and Richard Kaeske.

By: Christine Weiss

January 17th was a bitter cold day perfect to stay

home, turn up the heat, cuddle up under a blanket, and

drink hot tea. That day we had our first get together

in the New Year. Only the very top die-hard members

showed up at the Kison’s door and were welcomed by

a steaming hot pot of soup. Needless to say we were

only about a handful of people that fitted perfectly

around the Kison’s kitchen table which is located near

a big picture window. Outside the window birds of all

kinds were picking away at the seeds left in the bird

house.

We were enjoying our meal when to our surprise

the door opened and one of our members entered with

his son, daughter in law, grand child and their visiting

mother in law from Russia.

To our delight Mike had brought his guitar and

his daughter-in-law Anna her accordion. We retreated

in to the living room and had a great time singing

while both of them played their instruments. Anna’s

mother, Ludmella, gave us a very special treat by

singing “Moscow by Night” in Russian. We all had a

wonderful time.

Valentines Day was party time at Christine’s house.

Punctually, right at 4 o’clock the party started. Food

was plentiful and the “Stimmung” was outstanding

and the turn out was simply great.

Greetings From South Bend

Mike Jones with his daughter in law Anna.

April / May 2009 German-American Journal 9

From the Pennsylvania Shore of Lake Erie

By: Beverly Pochatko

Threats of yet another snow storm did not deter

the hardy members of the Chapter from attending the

February meeting and mini-Fasching Party. With the

changes in the temperature from 60+ degrees back

to the average of 28 degrees, many of our members

are battling the effects of sinus infections, flu-like

symptoms, and old-fashioned colds. We wish them

all a quick recovery.

Our event took place in the ballroom of the Erie

Männerchor Club (our home and a D.A.N.K. Associate

Member) and although really very spacious for our

event, we enjoyed the evening.

Following a brief business meeting, everyone

received the traditional Mardi Gras beads and there was

a discussion about the various ways Shrove Tuesday

was celebrated by our families. Margaret Potocki and

Margaret Carter really were into the celebration and

dressed for the occasion. Our baked good included

‘Krapfen’ made by Margaret Potocki, and the apricot

filled Fastnacht Keuchle (Maria Getchell’s recipe)

and the Fastnachts – we called pillowcases – from the

Hartman family made by Beverly Pochatko. Needless

to say, they were truly enjoyed with our cups of

steaming hot coffee! It was good to have the various

areas of Germany represented in our baked goods -

referring to the German proverb “ Probieren

geht über studieren” – i.e the proof of

the pudding is in the eating because

attempting something is better than

just studying it!

Our German language classes

have resumed and in April, we

will be starting a conversational /

traveler’s German class. Our classes

held at the St. Joseph RC Church

Social Center, the only German

Catholic Church in the historic area

once called Eagle Village. Nearby is St.

John’s Lutheran Church, the oldest Lutheran

church in Erie founded by German immigrants.

The Chapter is sponsoring a German History

Contest for our local high school students to encourage

them to learn more about the contributions Germans

and German-Americans both to our nation and our

own local. The contest is open to Erie County students

in the 8th to 12th grades. Deadline for entries is April

30th. A $100 prize will be awarded the winning paper

at the May meeting of the Chapter with a reception

following. All submitting students will receive a

certificate of participation and the teachers of

the German classes will receive a one-

year subscription to the German Life

magazine.

Looking forward to our March

meeting, our guest speaker will

be Dr. Leo Gruber of Edinboro

University who will speak on

Dietrich Bonhoeffer, a Lutheran

pastor and university professor.

Bonhoeffer is a very interesting

figure in German history, and everyone

should take the time to learn more about

this man. Dietrich Bonhoeffer was a true hero

of the German people as no soldier or general ever

could be.

Let’s hope that the warm days of spring come

quickly and the daffodils will soon be blooming.

Better yet, support the American Cancer Society and

purchase a bunch of daffodils to bring the hope of

spring and life into your homes.

Karneval In Chicago

By: Darlene Fuchs

The Mardi Gras Society of Chicago, dedicated to

preserving the German heritage of the area, celebrated

Karneval, on Saturday the 21st of February in grand

style. It was great to see that many of the costumed

revelers in attendance were DANK members. Riding

high up on their float, beads and candy were tossed

into the crowd by Prince Bobby I. And Princess Sylvia

I. Decorated in a sea of color everyone danced and

celebrated into the wee hours of the night

The festivities kicked off on Thursday, February 19

with Weiberfastnacht which is the start of a weekend

full of celebrations.. Generally, Karneval is celebrated

with masquerades in Germany and the same is true

in Chicago. The Maskenball or Masquerade Ball

was held by the Mardi Gras Society at the Donald

E Stephens Convention Center. On the following

Monday, February 23rrd., everyone continued the

celebration with Rosenmontag, at the DANK Haus,

which means “Rose Monday.”

Celebrants from the Reinischer Verein Chicago, The

Prinzenpaare & their court from Minneapolis/St.Paul, and

members of DANK including Bill Fuchs, National President.

Prince Bobby I and Princess Sylvia I

Responding to the wishes of our members two

years ago and adhering to the educational and cultural

goals of DANK Chapter # 58 the inception of German

Language classes two years ago became a perfect fit.

Adult Conversational classes are held both at the

Pittsburgh chapter and Mason -Dixon sub-chapter.

The Chapter 58 class just completed this semester

consisting of ten weeks. Chapter 58 classes are taught

by Erna Jochum and the Mason –Dixon sub chapter

classes are taught by Ernie Jung. This has become the

foundation of what will lead to additional classes who

goals are for the student to be fluent in conversational

German.

Pittsburgh Chapter Finishes Its Second

Year of Offering Adult Conversational German

Left to right: Sitting is Patrick Joyce, Loretta O!Brien, Eric Dean and Robert Luther. Standing is Fred Geib, Erna Jochum,

Chris Sabatini and John O!Connor. Missing is Nadine Durham.

By: Ed Mueller

The weather was perfect, the place was packed,

the costumes were regal, and the crowd danced until

midnight. February 7th was the Milwaukee Soccer

Club -D.A.N.K. Milwaukee date for the Mardi Gras/

Karneval at the Bavarian Inn. Wow! The “Johnny

Hoffmann Band” even played a number after

midnight!

Three-colored helium balloons and the huge

clowns adorned the tables and air balloons graced the

front of the stage. Guests for the occasion included

the Milwaukee Spielmannzug, with its Prince &

Princess, its Drum & Bugle Corps, its dance group

and the Mullers “Fasching Dancers, who have been

at our Mardi Gras since their inception. Prizes were

given to all youth in costume, and 3 prizes for adult

singles, doubles and groups in costume.

Dancing The Night Away In Milwaukee

Michael Dittmann attended Karneval as an excellent

“Sopetto-Pinnochio” character.

10 German-American Journal April / May 2009

Expansion Despite Recession

By: Wolf D. Fuhrig

It was in the summer of 1978 when

I drove into Jacksonville with a lady

visitor from Germany. When we

passed by the newly opened Aldi store

on East Morton Avenue, she expressed

amazement that this Midwestern

town would have a grocery with

the same name as her grocery in

Germany. When we checked with the

manager, we quickly found out that it

was not a coincident at all.

We learned that all the Aldi stores

here and in Europe belonged to

the same brothers, Karl and Theo

Albrecht. The two had been raised in

modest circumstances. Their father

was a miner; their mother operated a

small grocery store where Theo served

as an apprentice while Karl worked in

a delicatessen shop.

In 1948 the brothers incorporated

their grocery by the name “Aldi”, short

for Albrecht Discount. By 1955 they

had expanded their business to 100

stores and by 1960 to over 300. At

that time, the brothers divided their

control over the company. Theo took

the northern territories of Germany and

Karl the area south of the Ruhr valley.

Initially the Aldi groceries carried

only its own 500 select brand products

to be sold at the lowest prices

possible. Overhead expenses were

kept to a minimum. That gradually

made Aldi the king of the no frills

shopping experience. It is the niche

the company has found profitable

and popular with lower and middle

income shoppers.

By 1976, Aldi decided to

expand across the Atlantic and

open its first store in southeastern

Iowa. Continuously honing and

refining its merchandising methods,

the stores added more refrigerated

and frozen foods, as well as special

offerings of imported items.

When the company’s

management got concerned about

the cost of retrieving unreturned

shopping carts, it introduced the

German-made shopping carts

that require a 25-cent returnable

deposit. Since then, employees no

longer need to hunt all over the parking

lot for unreturned carts. More recently,

Aldi stores began accepting debit cards

and opening on Sundays. Now they

carry about 1,400 regularly-stocked

items, including fresh meat, and, in

some locations, beer and wine.

By 1997 Aldi controlled over

3,000 stores in Germany, by 2003,

6,500 stores worldwide. In the U.S.

today, Aldi owns over 1,000 stores

in 29 states, from the East Coast to

Kansas. Two years ago, Wal-Mart

closed its discount outlets in Germany,

partly because shoppers found the U.S.

giant too expensive in comparison

to Aldi. In 2008, the company’s

American revenues were reported to

have grown by as much as 20 percent

to $7 billion.

Aldi’s continuing growth has

convincingly shown that discount

merchandising can be profitable. Since

1961, Karl Albrecht has increased

his estimated net worth to over $27

billion. That makes him the wealthiest

man in Germany and the eleventh

richest man worldwide. (Yet, he is

still far behind America’s Warren

Buffet, who last year owned some

$62 billion and is still ten years

younger than the 88-year old

Albrecht.)

In 1994, Karl Albrecht removed

himself from the company’s daily

operations and became chairman

of the board. At the beginning

of 2002, he also relinquished this

position and, according to Forbes

magazine, retired to raising orchids

and playing golf on his own golf

course.

Presently, the U.S. arm of Aldi

is in the process of expanding in

Wal-Mart’s home turf and opening

75 more stores, including its first

outlet in New York City. As the Aldi

experience has shown, merchandising

low-cost foods and other necessities

cannot only be very rewarding, it is

obviously also far more recession-

proof than merchandising upscale and

luxury goods.

and so on around to braid the ribbons

over-and-under around the pole. Those

passing on the inside will have to duck,

those passing on the outside raise their

ribbons to slide over.

In Bavarian villages, it has been the

custom for centuries to cut a tall and

straight tree, a day or two before May

1, place it in the middle of the village

and decorate it with a wreath of spring

flowers and colorful ribbons. One of

the traditions is to attempt to steal the

Maypole of the neighboring village the

night before, and to hold it for ransom,

usually for a couple kegs of beer. At the

same time villagers had to make sure

that their Maypole was not stolen by

their neighbors.

Another Bavarian tradition is the

Maibaumkraxeln (Maypole climbing)

contest. In many parts of Bavaria

guys battle to see who can climb up

the shaven and polished tree trunk the

fastest, a task made even tougher by

soaping down the Maypole, so that

climbers only succeed if they smear

ashes, tree sap or pitch on their hands.

The goal is to win the Bretzeln und

Würste (pretzels and sausages) that

hang on top of the pole and to impress

the girls down in the crowd.

MAYContinued from page 1

YOUR LOGO

*Please note: See other side for important rates, fees and other cost information.

Please mail completed application to:

UMB Card Center / Attn: Betty Thomas

MS 1110505

906 Grand Blvd. Kansas City, MO 64106

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See reverse side for important rates, fees and other cost information.

DANK Platinum Credit Card Application

YOUR LOGO

*Please note: See other side for important rates, fees and other cost information.

Please mail completed application to:

UMB Card Center / Attn: Betty Thomas

MS 1110505

906 Grand Blvd. Kansas City, MO 64106

Powered by CardPartner.com. The #1 provider of credit card programs for smaller organizations.

See reverse side for important rates, fees and other cost information.

DANK Platinum Credit Card Application

AP P LY ON L I N E

To see a full list of details or to sign up for you card

online, visit us at:

www.dank.org/credi t_card.html

Also, visit us at the above address to submit your idea

for additional credit card designs!

DANK PLATINUM CREDIT CARD APPLICATION

April / May 2009 German-American Journal 11

D.A.N.K. Chicago North is the first Greman-

American-National-Congress chapter to own their own

Haus. What was once the “Three Links Hotel” will be

the location of D,A,N.K’s headquarters. The building

purchased for $175,000.00 will open January 1, 1969

and it’s plan is to make room for the D.A.N.K. German

language weekend school. Before we can open the

doors to events it will take a lot of sweat and gold to

make it functional. After 10 years our organizations

dream has become a reality. If the Germans would work

together, much can be accomplished. We are proud of

our members for without them none of this would have

been possible. Photo’s - Signing purchase paperwork

at Lincoln Square Savings & Loan Association.

ENGLISH TRANSLATION

A Second DANK Haus, Chicago South

DANK South, soon to celebrate its 10 year anniversary

is serious about building a DANK Haus for those members

to the south of Chicago. Startup monies of $18,000.00

along with member donations will make it possible. If

all 1500 members donate $25 it would allow the 10

year anniversary to be celebrated in the new DANK

Kulturhaus.

After 10 Years 20,000 Members

After 10 years in a small room on the corner of Western

and Lawrence Ave. One reflected back to the founding of

the German-American National Congress. It all started on

December 12, 1958 that the organization started with the

help of the “Abendpost.”

Who would have guessed that after ten years the

membership would to 20,000.

ENGLISH SUMMARIES

12 German-American Journal April / May 2009

Teachers From The Midwest Came To Learn About The New German Diploma TestsBy: Christa Garcia

ZfA-Koordinatorin-Chicago/Midwest

The DANK National Education

Committee Co-Chairs, Dr. Anne

Marie Fuhrig, Alexandra Pradella Ott

and Christa Garcia, and the German

Language School Teachers from the

Midwest met on Saturday afternoon on

January 24, 2009 at the DANK-HAUS

in the DANK School Chicago North

classrooms.

Dr. Inke Pinkert-Saeltzer, Language

Coordinator from Washington DC,

conducted the Teacher In-service

Workshop on the requirements of the

new German Language Diplomas levels

A2, B1 and C1.

Some of the German Saturday

School Language Teachers traveled

from Michigan, Ohio, Wisconsin

and various other towns in Illinois.

After ample refreshments (coffee, tea,

water, German bread, various German

sausages, cheese, and cake) the twenty

workshop participants were reenergized

to get started.

Dr. Inke Pinkert-Saeltzer

demonstrated to everyone the language

capabilities that each of the student

candidates must possess when planning

to pass the German Language Diploma

level A2, B1 or C1.

Each of the workshop participants

was also shown DVD live interviews

of German-speaking students from

various countries. The teachers were

then given the opportunity to rate the

language ability of each

student according to definite

prescribed criteria. The

scoring procedure was then

practiced in groups of two and

agreement had to achieved in

each of the groups.

A rather lively discussion

emerged during the consensus

phase during which our

National DANK President,

Bill Fuchs, stopped by to greet

everybody. He received a big

round of applause when he addressed

the audience in German for more then

five minutes. It was decided by all

present that he had ‘passed’ the test!

The Legacy of 1848Iowa’s Transplanted Schleswig-Holstein Journalistsand Denison’s Own Henry Finnern

By: Dr. Joachim Reppmann

Who was America’s most remark-

able and unique immigrant group?

Surprisingly, many historians feel it

may have been a small group of a few

thousand revolutionary refugees from

Europe who arrived in the United States

between 1847 and 1856. Although un-

successful in their struggle for freedom

in Europe, these “Forty-eighters” pro-

vided an intellectual transfusion that

had a pronounced effect on the political

and social history of America during

one of its most critical periods.

Many of the Forty-eighters hailing

from Schleswig-Holstein in northern

Germany chose

Iowa as their

adopted home.

There, some

of the best and

brightest be-

gan using their

finely honed

j o u r n a l i s t i c

skills to argue

in favor of the

freedoms and liberties so dear to them.

Ironically, the patriotism of these recent

immigrants was more grounded in the

bedrock beliefs of America’s founding

fathers than in many of the attitudes

having currency in the United States at

the time.

The legacy of this extraordinary im-

migrant group, although far-reaching

and profound, is little understood by

most Americans today, many of whom

are three or four generations removed

from their own immigrant ancestors.

The overarching purpose of the Leg-

acy of 1848 Conference is to identify

and come to grips with the important

legacy left to all of us by the Forty-

eighters.

The conference will also present

the biography of Heinrich Christian

Finnern, a Schleswig-Holstein immi-

grant who settled in Denison, Iowa, be-

coming a successful newspaper owner

and respected public servant. The story

of Finnern’s grit and determination in

overcoming obstacles and prejudices is

a poignant one with lessons that are in-

creasingly relevant. His life provides

an example — perhaps even a blueprint

— for how an immigrant can succeed

in his adopted home, be a constructive

part of his new community, and even

help shape the future of his fellow citi-

zens.

The Legacy of 1848 Conference will

be held October 30-31, 2009, in Deni-

son, Iowa. Coordinating the conference

events will be Forty-eighter experts Dr.

Joachim “Yogi” Reppmann (Northfield/

Flensburg) and Dr. Don Heinrich Tolz-

mann (Cincinnati). The keynote ad-

dress will be presented by Hollywood

film and TV star Eric Braeden. Brae-

den, a Schleswig-Holstein immigrant

himself, was awarded the Ellis Island

Medal of Honor in 2007 and has twice

been presented with the Federal Medal

of Honor from Germany’s president for

his contributions to German-American

relations.

Proudly Announcing German Contest

for Students in DANK SchoolsStudents should study one German-American from a list (found at www.

DANK.org/contests.html) for a project. By April 4, they should bring their

work to German class, so that the teacher can bring or send it to the DANK-

Haus for judging by the D.A.N.K. jury on May 3.

DANK National will award prizes and exhibit the best projects

at the 2009 National Convention at DANK South.

Projects should

Be on poster board, no larger than 17 x 11 inches

Have text and images and Present the chosen person well.

Remembrance Of Expellee Suffering Can Lead To Reconciliation

By: Dr. Albert Jabs

As a life long member of the

Lutheran Church, and privileged

as a soldier, professor, and global

researcher, I am convinced of the

necessity of supporting the work of the

Federation of Expellees which is part of

the Berlin Museum; this tells the story

of the expulsion of approximately l4

million ethnic Germans out of Poland,

the then Czechoslovakia, and other

Eastern European areas...and the lost

of 2.5 million, largely women and

children.

This evening I went over a package

of letters written by these refugees over

sixty years ago. They were written

to the Immanuel Lutheran church, in

Bristol, Connecticut, and to leaders

like the Reverend George Meyer, and

my parents, Albert and Lydia Jabs.

My mother was a principal leader in

organizing “Hilfswerk” packages with

the local parochial school and church,

which on one occasion sent out over

300 packages of valuable food stuffs.

As a young man, I still recall pulling

the strings on the packages. This

seemed to be religion in action. The

Emergency Planning Council out of

the Missouri Synod Headquarters in

St. Louis was also coordinating this

work, but it is a reflection of a church

body responding to desperate human

need of the expellees and is relevant

for the assistance of millions of

refugees which still roam around on

this globe..

The Berlin Museum really is an

extension of that story studying human

need; it would serve to drive home the

necessity to work on the resolution of

conflict and policies of reconciliation.

To distort that humanitarian project

as an attempt to revise the causes of

WW II is sheer demagoguery and fear

mongering. I have traveled on two

occasions to Poland and extensively to

other central Europeans areas, and am

confident that Expellee history has a

story of suffering that is not revanchist

or vengeful, but a study of a path of

sorrows, like our American Indian Trail

of Tears here in the Jackson period of

US history in the l830’s. .

I have spoken to Polish priests and

many of them do understand the value

of studying a full and honest history.

On the other hand, I recall the former

Prime Minister of Poland, in answer to

a question of mine concerning ethnic

German suffering, dismissed the issue

as of little consequence. In fact, at

places like Potulace both Germans

and Poles combined to study the local

camp used for both Poles and ethnic

Germans after WW II. Author, John

Sack, had stated that there were over

l000 of such camps which suffered

grievous mortality rates. In studying

the ethnic German history, visitors can

learn to identify the demonization,

stereotypes, and misuse of history. We

are not to marginalize any suffering.

Suffering, obviously, came to many

peoples, during WW II, and it is vital

that students of history recognize the

dangers of fear propaganda in a nuclear

age where Poland and US have security

agreements and that there are at least

nine nations in the nuclear nursery...

including unstable Pakistan..

Finally, and perhaps most

importantly, some years ago, Polish

and German Bishops got together

to forgive each other and to give

forgiveness to each other. A great

dynamic in view of the millions who

suffered on both sides...and with Ash

Wednesday coming up and the Lenten

Season...additional motivations can

come up supporting the study of

Expellee Suffering...which my family

also went through in that sixty year plus

story. Erika Steinbach is a courageous

visionary women; Chancellor Angela

Merkel, perhaps the only international

leader who can understand Einstein’s

theories, and additionally the daughter

of a Lutheran clergyman, growing up

in in the East Germany, has to face

certain ambiguities, but certainly

should support the Berlin Museum for

the study of the Expellee expulsions

and suffering.

April / May 2009 German-American Journal 13

Dank Travel Program By Mayflower Tours

Review By: Dr. Albert Jabs

Dagmar Barnouw. Truly, an astonishing story. It

is worth remembering. A young girl, at nine years

old, recalling the burning fires of Dresden, Feb,

l945, and then fleeing with her mother, to the Ameri-

can Zone in Bavaria, in l945, and coming to America

on a scholarship in l962, earning a Ph.D at Yale, but

then fighting through discrimination at the Univer-

sity of California. Her story can leave a reader spell-

bound. But there is more, much more, and the living

legacy of this author, professor par excellence, aca-

demician, anti-discrimination pioneer, wife, mother,

and grandmother, who died in 2008, has an enduring

story.

Her remarkable words live...when she expressed

the statement: “Isn’t there enough charity to appreci-

ate the suffering of other people in Germany during

WW II?” Author of 12 books and many articles, I

am convinced that she is a kind of Rosa Parks in both

her courage, vision, and declared statements. Fur-

thermore, the work of Dr. Barnouw, was carved out

of passages with childhood memories of the bomb-

ing of Dresden, expulsion, and various other precari-

ous paths of survival.

The work of Professor Barnouw is a living legacy

of learning about guilt and suffering. For those who

have taught history and traveled this world, and even

for those who have not, but have identified with suf-

fering in wars, combatant and non-

combatant, vanquished and victori-

ous, and survival guilt, Barnouw’s

work should to be reflected upon.

Dr. Marianne Bouvier, origi-

nally recommended Dr. Barnouw’s

life and work worthy of reflection;

I most enthusiastically agree, and

want to express appreciation to col-

league, Dr. Neary, for surfacing this

woman who faced daunting chal-

lenges throughout her life of seventy

two years. Some fresh insights are

in Dr. Dagmar Barnouw story and in

reading some of the tidbits a hunger

to know more develops.

“The War in the Empty Air: Victims, Perpetra-

tors, and Postwar Germans” by: Dagmar Bar-

nouw (2005) - Publisher Comments:

60 after the end of World War II, its impact on Ger-

man civilians remains a subject that is still difficult

to broach in public discourse. The

war experiences of ordinary Ger-

mans have been little studied, as if

the memories of the defeated were

not deserving of preservation. In

Germany, the subject sparks intense

debates about the official national

memory that the defeated were col-

lectively guilty. Dagmar Barnouw

seeks a place where the memories

of the horrors of persecution and the

horrors of war together might create

a more complete historical remem-

brance for postwar generations.

Remembering Dagmar Barnouw - Her Story, Their Story, Our Story

Choose from over 100 tours, domestic and world-wide, many new destinations. Ask for economical 3 and 4 day trips. Please contact BertLachner@aol.com or call 630/558-

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2009 Motor Coach, Amtrac or Air Tours

June: Branson Blast, 4 days, 5 Live Shows

July: National Parks of the West

September: Washington DC, Williamsburg

October: New England Rails & Sails

November: New York City Thanksgiving

December: California Tournament of Roses

2010 Destinations to Europe

Spring: Dutch, Rhine & Russian River Cruises

Summer: Europe by Train, London, Paris, etc.

Fall: Oberammergau Passion Play incl. tickets

December: Christmas Markets in Germany

By: Darlene Fuchs

Kate Winslet accepted the lead actress oscar for

her performance as a former German concentration

camp guard in “The Reader” (Der Vorleser).

Originally published in Switzerland, and graceful-

ly translated into English by Carol Brown Janeway,

The Reader is a brief tale about sex, love, reading,

and shame in postwar

Germany. Michael Berg

is 15 when he begins a

long, obsessive affair

with Hanna, a stranger

twice his age. The two

are quickly drawn into a

passionate but secretive

affair. Despite their in-

tense bond, Hanna mys-

teriously disappears one

day and Michael is left

confused and heartbro-

ken. Eight years later,

while Michael is a law student observing the Nazi

war crime trials, he is stunned to find Hanna back in

his life - this time as a defendant in the courtroom.

As Hanna’s past of unspeakable crimes is revealed,

Michael uncovers a deep secret that will impact both

of their lives. THE READER is a story about truth

and reconciliation, about how one generation comes

to terms with the crimes of another.

Spielzeugland, the winning Short

Film by Jochen Alexander Freydank, is

a film set during the Nazi era during the

winter of 1942 in a small German town.

Marianne’s son Heinrich entertains

a close friendship with David, the son

of the Silbersteins, whose deportation

is imminent. Heinrich asks his mother

about why his neighbors (all Jews) are

disappearing. What can Marianne tell

her son? For his sake in order to protect

him she tries to make him believe that

the neighbors are going on a journey to Toyland.

Unfortunately, it sounds like such a nice place that

the bot hopes to go there, too, and the film begins

with him sneaking off with a shipment of Jews to

the concentration camps because he wants to visit

this magical place. Much of the film consists of

the mother trying to find the boy and eventually

the SS officers help her to try to locate the boy.

This all ends in a marvelous twist.

German Stories Win Two Academy Awards

14 German-American Journal April / May 2009

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

WELCOME NEW MEMBERSBeiermeister, Patricia

Beiermeister, William

Braun, Mary J.

Broesicke, M.

Contos III, Peter

Cotter, Amelia

Daus, Daniela Miriam

Diamond, Gail

Diamond, Jesse

Diamond, Luke

Diamond, Rachel

Durham, John W.

Durham, Nadine

Eichhorn, Altagracia

Eichhorn, Martin R.

Eichhorn, Martina

Eichhorn, Nadjeschda

Eichhorn, Robert

Geib, Alice C.

Geib, Frederick W.

Grimm, Kristin E.

Hartman, Richard Otto

Henderlong, Anthony Joseph

Ippach, Ingrid

Johannsen, Lawrence S.

Johannsen, Wilma

Kendler, Peter

Kramer, Matthew Joseph

Kraus, Don

Krug, Frederick

Krug, Martin

Krug, Miroslava Mejia

Krug, Robert William

Krzyminski, Jamie Lee

Lozada, Rita Helena

Mehringer, Karyn

Mosch, Hans Dieter

Plank, Dorothy

Plank, Robert G.

Reichman, Eberhard

Sales, Hellen

Sales, Jorge

Sales, Katie

Schindler, Kirk Dieter

Schindler, Michelle

Seibert, Kristi Lynn

Spaight, John D.

Stalle, David

Stalle, Ingrid

Vernon, Susan

Vogler, Jason

APRIL 2009

3 South Bend Fish Fry 6-8pm

3 Benton Harbor Fish Fry, 2651 Pipestone Rd.

Benton Harbor, MI 49022, Phone 269-926-6652,

Doors open at 5:30pm, Dinner 6-8pm, Band

7-10pm, Tickets $8.00

4 Milwaukee Board Meeting 3:30pm

11 Benton Harbor Easter Egg Hunt (Members Only)

2651 Pipestone Rd. Benton Harbor MI 49022,

Phone 269-926-6652, 2:00pm

15 Erie 19th Anniversary Celebration and Dinner,

Erie Maennerchor Club, Call Margaret Potocki

at 835-1939 for dinner reservations, 6:00pm

19 Chicago-West Board Meeting 1:30pm

19 Lake County Legacy Brunch in South Banquet

Room of Country Squire Restaurant, Grayslake,

Illinois

19 Phoenix Meets at Black Forest Mill Restaurant

23 Benton Harbor Student Award Night (Potluck),

2651 Pipestone Rd. Benton Harbor, MI 49022,

Phone 269-926-6652, 6:00pm

25 Benton Harbor Spring Dance with Hank Haller,

Doors open 5:30pm, Dinner 6-8pm, Dancing

7-11pm, Tickets $6.00 at the door

MAY 2009

1 Benton Harbor Fish Fry, 2651 Pipestone Rd. Ben-

ton Harbor, MI 49022, Phone 269-926-6652, Doors

open at 5:30pm, Dinner 6-8pm, Band 7-10pm,

Tickets $8.00

2 Milwaukee Board Meeting 3:30pm

3 Benton Harbor Membership Meeting, 2651

Pipestone Rd. Benton Harbor, MI 49022,

Phone 269-926-6652, 4:00pm

16 Chicago-West May Dance and 50th

Anniversary

17 Chicago-West Board Meeting 1:30pm

17 Phoenix Meets at Black Forest Mountain

Restaurant

20 Erie Student Awards Night (German Heritage

Contest), Reception to follow

30 Benton Harbor “Fred Meijer’s Garden,”

Grand Rapids, MI 8:00pm (Call for Carpool)

This area is designated for DANK chapters to inform their members and the public of events they are having. In order for each chapter to grow, people need to be

informed of the various functions and activities. We encourage full chapter participation since this area is not limited to 3 or 4 chapters. In order to streamline our

calendar of events please send an email to the DANK Executive Office at office@dank.org with your calendar as a word attachment. Refer to the 2nd page of the

Journal for submission deadlines. We will need your Chapter Name, Name of the Event, Location of the Event, Hours, Ticket Price and contact information including

a phone number.

WalpurgisnachtBy: Darlene Fuchs

There’s a penetrating chill in the wind. The bright

moon rises behind the shivering, nearly naked trees.

A profound sense of foreboding permeates the dark-

ness. This is a night, after all, when witches ride their

broomsticks through the sky, and the natural world

is forced to confront the powers of the supernatural.

No, it isn’t October 31 and this is not Halloween. It’s

April 30 and it’s Walpurgisnacht (Walpurgis Night).

Walpurgisnacht is similar to Halloween in that it

has to do with supernatural spirits. It is a traditional

religious holiday, and like Halloween, Walpurgis-

nacht it has its roots in ancient pagan customs, su-

perstitions and festivals.

At this time of year, the Vikings participated in a

ritual that they hoped would hasten the arrival of

Spring weather and ensure fertility for their crops

and livestock. They would light huge bonfires in

hopes of scaring away evil spirits. Still today, in

large parts of central and northern Europe, witches

are supposed to gather on the occasion. The bon-

fires seen in today’s celebration still reflect those

pagan origins and the human desire to drive away

the winter cold and welcome spring.

Celebrated mainly in Sweden, Finnland, Esto-

nia, Latvia, and Germany, Walpurgisnacht gets it’s

name from Saint Walburga (or Walpurga), a wom-

an born in what is now England in 710. Die Heil-

ige Walpurga traveled to Germany and became a

nun at the convent of Heidenheim in Württemberg.

Following her death in 778 (or 779), she was made

a saint, with May 1 as her saint day. Due to her

holy day falling on this day, her name became as-

sociated with the celebrations. Early Christianity

had a policy of ‘Christianising’ pagan festivals so it

is perhaps no accident that St. Walpurga’s day was

set to May 1st.

It was believed that on Walpurgis Night witches

met with the devil in certain places, especially the

Harz Mountains in Germany. There the Brocken, the

highest peak in the Harz Mountains, is considered

the focal point of Walpurgisnacht. Also known as the

Blocksberg, the 1142-meter peak is often shrouded

in mist and clouds, lending it a mysterious atmo-

sphere that has contributed to its legendary status

as the home of Hexen (witches) and Teufel (devils).

“To the Brocken the witches ride...” (“Die Hexen zu

dem Brocken ziehn...”). In Bavaria Walpurgisnacht

is known as Freinacht(Free night) also resembling

Halloween, complete with youthful pranks.

In it’s Christian version, the former pagan festival

in May became Walpurgis, a time to drive out evil

spirits, usually with loud noises, before being ban-

ished by the dawn of this saint’s special day. Though

St. Walburga originally had no connection with this

festival, her name became associated with witchcraft

and country superstitions because of the date. It is

possible that the protection of crops ascribed to her,

represented by three ears of corn in her paintings,

may have been transferred to her from Mother Earth

and the connection to this pagan holiday.

WHAT’S COOKING?Support our national membership activities by

purchasing a German Life Cookbook.

DANK is joining with the people of the

German Life Magazine to bring you this

collection oftasteful rememberances. Allow

taste and aroma to transport you to Germany as

you read and try the many recipes of our culinary

heritage. You may find that forgotten dish your

GroBmutter cooked in years gone by.

Just $10 plus $4 shipping will add this

collection of traditional Germanrecipes to your

kitchen. The book is also available through many

DANK chapters and our National Office.

Fill in the attached form and send it with your

check made out to DANK - Membership Fund

Name ______________________________

Address ____________________________

City_____________ State____ Zip______

Amount enclosed $_____ # of books____

Please remit this order form and check to:

DANK EXECUTIVE OFFICE

4740 N. Western Avenue

Chicago, IL 60625-2097

Attention: Cookbook Orders

April / May 2009 German-American Journal 15

THE FIRST MOON LANDING MEDALLION

Industrious men and women of German descent have played an important role in making the United States the

great country it is today. In tribute to both nations, the German-American National Congress, Inc., is issuing a

medal commemorating the progress and contributions of outstanding Germans and German-Americans here and

throughout the world.

This medal honors three men of German extraction who

contributed immeasurably to America’s achievements in

space: Willy Ley, whose writings inspired a generation

of young Americans to regard space as a frontier of their

time; Dr. Hermann Oberth, a pioneer in the field of rocket

propulsion, and Dr. Wernher von Braun, whose concepts

convinced President Kennedy that America should direct

its space program toward the goal of landing men on the

moon. The reverse of this medal commemorates the first

actual moon landing, which took place on July 20, 1969.

This medal is designed and produced by The Franklin Mint,

the world’s largest and foremost private mint. It is available

only through the German-American National Congress, Inc.

Measuring 39mm in diameter, the “Pioneers of Space and Rocketry”

commemorative is available in solid bronze at $19 and silver at $30.

German-American National Congress, Inc.

4740 North Western Avenue

Chicago, Illinois 60625

My check or money order is enclosed for:

____ 39mm Solid Bronze Medallions (Mint Finish) @ $19 each .......$_______

____ 39mm Silver Medallions (Mint Finish) @ $30 each ..................$_______

NAME _______________________________

STREET ______________________________

CITY _________________________________

STATE ____________________ ZIP _______

OBITUARIES

It is with sadness that the Milwaukee chapter of DANK announces the passing of two of its

members.

Konrad Hauptvogel came to America and worked for Usinger Sausage Company in Milwaukee.

He moved to Florida upon retirement in 1990. He recently celebrated his 40th anniversary of

membership in DANK. He is survived by relatives both in Florida and southeastern Wisconsin.

The funeral was held in Florida and a memorial service will be held in Wisconsin at a later

date.

Artur Hirt, a Milwaukee chapter board member for many years, passed away in mid January.

He is survived by Hedwig, his wife of 57 years and children Ingrid (John) Braun, Helga (Don)

Wohlfeil, Bernd, Andree (Dynell) and Gary (Regina). Brother-in-Law of Trudy (Don) Dietzel. As

a board member, he advised the board on many issues. His quiet manner and low key approach

to problems will be sorely missed.

The board and members of the Milwaukee chapter wish to extend their deepest sympathy to both

family and friends.

Gerda E. Honigmann a DANK member of Chicago South since November 1, 1964, passed away

January 24, 2009 at the age of 94. She is survived by daughter Karin and grandchildren.

What Happened To The

60 Million Germans?

By: Anna Marie Fuhrig

In travels in this country one is

left wondering! Could they possibly

be camouflaging their identity? They

probably do that at work but at night

Germans continue to prefer socializing

in the way they know, with friends and

good music, probably also over a good

beer or bottle of wine. Lest we new

Americans loose our identity and pos-

sibly the opportunity to practice our

end-of-work customs, we need to let

our preferences be known publically.

The occasion where we can do so na-

tionwide is when we get the long form

for the US Census of 2010.

From one ten year Census to the

next, it seems to become more inter-

esting for Ethnic Americans

to watch whether they

kept their previous

proportion of the

US population.

It seems that

some groups

actually lob-

by the par-

ticular office

in the Depart-

ment of com-

merce which

runs the US Cen-

sus. This office has

recently attracted at-

tention when Sen. Judd

Gregg (R-N.H.) cited the Census as a

reason for withdrawing as Commerce

secretary nominee.

That kind of politics does not

slow down the planning for 2010

though, and the Office has al-

ready submitted the planned ques-

tions for approval. If you visit web

site: www.census.gov/2010census/

pdf/2010ACSnotebook.pdf you can

review all 47 or more questions that ev-

ery household, which receives the long

form, needs to fill out for all members

of the residential unit. You will also

find justification of each question and,

since the office adapts the long form

every time, a note on changes since the

previous Census.

On the upcoming Census, Ameri-

cans who get this long form will find

it again difficult to proclaim their Ger-

man heritage (or origin or ancestry, as

the Census calls it).

Since 2000, this question has looked

like this:

12. What is the person’s ancestry or

ethnic origin?

(For example: Italian, Jamaican, Af-

rican Am., Cambodian, Cape Verdean,

Norwegian, Dominican, French Ca-

nadian, Haitian, Korean, Lebanese,

Polish, Nigerian, Mexican, Taiwanese,

Ukrainian, and so on.)

The Census Office has justified this

question to politicians like this:

Ancestry identifies the ethnic ori-

gins of the population. Federal agen-

cies regard this information as es-

sential for fulfilling many important

needs. Ancestry is required to enforce

provisions under the Civil Rights Act,

which prohibits discrimination based

upon race, sex, religion, and national

origin. More generally, these data are

needed to measure the social and eco-

nomic characteristics of ethnic groups

and to tailor services to accommodate

cultural differences.”

Before, in 1990—when Ronald

Reagan was in charge—then question

8 asked for the head of household’s

country of birth and there is a blank

field under the question. Question 13

asked for the person’s ethnic origin

and gave German as the first

of several examples. It is

unclear what prompt-

ed the changes for

the 2000 Cen-

sus, but the list

of examples

for question 8

was reduced

from 21 to 16.

Dropped from

the 1990 list

were German,

Croatian, Ecua-

doran, Cajun, Irish,

Thai, and Slovak. You

can see more details on the

change at web site: www.census.gov/

population/www/cen2000/90vs00/

index.html . Added for 2000 were

Cambodian and Nigerian. Remember-

ing how much help some people need

with filling out the Census forms cor-

rectly, it is conceivable that some eth-

nic groups were shorted in the 2000

count which could explain part of the

drop for Germans from close to 60 to

43 million.

In the service of the truth, Ger-

man-Americans should remind each

other to fill out what is now question

12 by writing in “German,” regard-

less of what they see in the brackets

underneath. By working diligently on

this, they serve those of us who also

share this heritage and help all of us

to proclaim our heritage; after all most

Germans have served this country

well. Better yet, they should enlist as

census assistants; the announcements

for training location are beginning to

appear in the media Who knows, by

going into the regional details of web

sites where the Census records these

“Germans,” they may even be able to

target some of them as potential new

members. Some German-American

organizations are now spreading the

word and encouraging their members

and friends to help. They may even be

able to get politicians pay more atten-

tion to them. Let’s pull together and do

it right this time!

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16 German-American Journal April / May 2009

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in the German-American Journal